Many are in denial about poor health, survey finds

A national consumer survey has shown most Irish people lack the time and motivation to adopt healthier lifestyles and, despite rising obesity levels and falling levels of physical exercise, many are in denial about being personally unhealthy.

This denial indicates that the outlook for improving Ireland's health status is not positive, acording to the Nutrition and Health Foundation (NHF).

In a bid to improve the health of workers, the NHF yesterday announced a workplace wellbeing programme (WWP), which sets out exercise, sports and nutrition initiatives for implementation within companies. The programme is supported by employers' group Ibec.

The NHF also published the results of a survey carried out among a sample of 1,200 adults and children of attitudes to health and lifestyle here.

It found that, while almost half believed people were less healthy than 20 years ago because they ate too much, took less exercise and experienced more stress, primarily due to work and family pressures, 87 per cent still indicated general happiness with their individual health.

Three out of four people said their workplace did not encourage daily physical activity. More than half (55 per cent) said they would participate in a workplace programme which offered a healthy lifestyle if that was available, while 37 per cent said they would not.

Despite other surveys showing many people (57 per cent) are either overweight or obese, 84 per cent said they believed their own diet was about right or only needed to be "a little better".

Seventy-eight per cent believed they were either taking enough exercise (47 per cent) or only needed to take "a little more" exercise (31 per cent).

This contrasts with a recent study showing that 22 per cent of Irish adults reported no physical activity at all and only 40 per cent met the World Health Organisation recommended mimimum of 30 minutes' accumulated activity on five or more days per week.

The WWP could make a significant contribution to improving the health of workers, should companies take the positive step of adopting it, Dr Louise Sullivan, manager of the NHF, said.

Questioned about health concerns, the biggest of those surveyed were cancer (31 per cent) and heart disease/cholesterol (15 per cent) with only 5 per cent identifying obesity or insufficient exercise as of concern. Women were more worried about health than men, and 20 per cent said they had no health concerns at all.

Asked about the biggest barriers to adopting a more healthy lifestyle and engaging in exercise, 60 per cent of people blamed lack of time or lack of motivation.

Only 14 per cent felt lack of information was to blame, and the survey indicates people generally have a good understanding of what they should be eating.

While it indicated that many people had absorbed the message about the need to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables daily, fewer realised the significance of eating smaller portions and of drinking sufficient fluids.